In the Spring of 2019 I started A Game Basketball. For many reasons the time was right for me to start a program that would allow me to share my passion and knowledge of the game to the youth of Ventura County with the goal of getting them ready for the next level both on and off the court.
In 2010 I became the head coach of the boys basketball team at Balboa Middle School and in 2011 I started coaching the girls basketball team as well. If your interested in supporting the program, you can buy a banner ad or sponsor a player in our annual Free-Throw-Athon.
Basketball Bio
When I think back to my earliest memories in regards to basketball, I can say that my older brother, Dave, was a big influence. We had both participated in AYSO soccer, but when Dave was in the third grader, he was able to start playing in the Ventura Youth Basketball Association (VYBA). As he participated in practices and games, I quickly found myself drawn to the game. It didn’t hurt that a bunch of the neighborhood kids that I went to school with also liked sports like basketball. We would often play during our recesses as early as first grade. Once I became a third grader, I was extremely excited to start playing organized basketball. By this time, I had experience with team sports in both AYSO and little league baseball, which I continued playing for many years, but it was basketball that quickly became my favorite. It didn’t hurt that I had the Showtime Lakers of the 80’s to watch and enjoy, increasing my love for the game. There is nothing like (and never will be) a Magic Johnson no look pass to James Worthy, Byron Scott, or Michael Cooper slashing to the basket from the wing for a dunk and you can’t forget that one of a kind sky hook from the "Captain", Kareem.
As my love for the game increased, so did my dedication to becoming the best player I could be. Along with playing VYBA every year, winning the championship in both my 5th and 8th grade years, I would often organize pick up games with my friends and as I got older I started playing on the outside courts at Ventura High School with adults on Saturday mornings and in the evenings after school. Not only did my skills improve, but I was forced to become a "tough" player, playing against guys that were bigger, stronger, and quicker.
Coming off of winning the VYBA championship my 8th grade year, I was invited to participate in the Junior Varsity summer league for Ventura High School. Realizing that I had the potential of jumping both the Freshman and Sophmore teams and discovering that I was joining a true basketball program headed by Ventura High School's new coach, Dan Larson, I was extremely excited about my future in basketball. Through hard work and dedication I was able to become the starting point guard for the JV team as a freshman, even being pulled up to the Varsity team for the CIF playoffs, of which I played about 45 seconds of our one and only playoff game that year. The next three years as a starting point guard and shooting guard at Ventura High School had many ups and downs, but throughout those three years, basketball was a huge part of my life, not only increasing my knowledge of the game, but teaching me life lessons as well.
After high school I chose to focus on academics and my future beyond basketball, attending Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. At this point, for various reasons I was ready to take a break from the sport that I had dedicated a majority of my life to. Since then, I have never stopped playing, wether it be in local men's leagues are pick up games at the gym, and now I have the great fortune of teaching the game to and playing with my own children. I am also very much enjoying my role as the Balboa Basketball coach for both the girls and boys teams as well as running my own club basketball organization, A Game Basketball.